The first thing you notice as you walk through the corridors of the Azov battalion's base in Mariupol are the swastikas.

There are many — painted on doors, adorning the walls and chalked onto the blackboards of this former school, now temporary headquarters for the Azov troops.

It is a confronting sight and when I query the young soldier assigned to show me around he is quick to correct me, pointing out that the symbol is in fact a "modified swastika" — more like the letter N crossed with a straight line.

When I point to another symbol of the Third Reich etched on the wall, that of Hitler's "SS", he simply shrugs and says: "We are nationalists, but we are not Nazis."

The Azov battalion is a highly controversial Ukrainian paramilitary group that has drawn much criticism for its links to the far right.

The imagery it has chosen to adopt hardly helps to allay concerns, but for my young guide it is a non-issue.

"Some journalists prefer to present us as Nazis. They look for any chance to discredit our regiment," he said.

After last month's rebel defeat of Ukrainian forces at Debaltseve in the north, attention has switched to the port city of Mariupol, less than 60 kilometres from the Russian border, which most believe is next in the separatists' sights.

I have been invited to tour the Azov base where new recruits are in training, preparing to defend the city from an attack which most here are predicting will come before the end of the Ukrainian spring.

It is closely linked to the Social-National Assembly, an umbrella organisation to a collection of ultra-nationalist and neo-Nazi groups in Ukraine, and many of Azov's recruits are drawn by its perceived far right-wing ideology.

Currently under the auspices of Ukraine's interior ministry, there are deep concerns that arming right-wing paramilitary groups like Azov might backfire and present a future threat to the government, but Dancer says the fears are unfounded.

"The battalion operates as a professional military unit," he said.

"The commanders listen to you while you listen to your subordinates, and all the daily and military questions are solved in a democratic way.

"There is no violence against younger conscripts in Azov, no stupid orders and notations."

Azov volunteers fight alongside regular Ukrainian forces and were amongst the earliest to see action in the conflict last year and its troops have a fearless reputation.

"I wanted to join a battalion that would be on the frontline and participate in real action," Dancer said.

We have people who could end the war, all we are missing are weapons.

Dancer

"I wanted to prove myself in combat and help Ukraine. That's why I joined Azov."

Dancer had his last "brush with the enemy" less than a month ago on the eastern outskirts of Mariupol, near the village of Shyrokine, when his unit came under attack by rebel forces who he claims were mostly Russian.

"I was deployed as a spotter and I saw Russian military equipment with Russian flags and Russian car tags through my binoculars," he said.

Achtung considers himself as a new generation soldier, fighting the war on two fronts — both as an active combatant and through social media, writing about his experiences on blog sites aimed at young Russians.

"I publish photos and news from the frontline and Azov's role in this war," he said.

"All of my Russian friends see this and most express their support, but there are some who are completely sold on Putin."

Achtung has also seen plenty of action in this bitter conflict which has claimed more than 6,000 lives, and recently took part in an operation where a Russian soldier was captured.

"The prisoner kept yelling at me 'you are a Ukrainian fascist!'," he said.

"So I told him — buddy, I am from Russia. From Moscow."

Achtung chuckles: "He was speechless, in shock."

Ukrainian soldiers defend and protect, not attack. They are defending their motherland — not fighting for some Tsar.

"We knew the separatists would be drinking hard and firing their mortars, but they were so drunk they were missing constantly and firing into the void," she said.

She smiles and says: "It was my coolest New Year ever!"

Natalya is quick to defend the integrity of the right-wing Azov brigade.

"Russians think that we and the right sector are the scariest people in Ukraine," she said.

"But most of our fighters know foreign languages, have a higher education, are intelligent and extremely literate."

Like other Azov soldiers, Natalya is driven by her desire to protect the Ukrainian motherland but admits that the family and friends she left behind in her home city of Ivano-Frankivsk are worried for her safety.

"My older sister was really shocked when I left and demanded that I come back," she said.

"I had to lie to her for some time, but now she says that she's really proud of me, and so are my friends."